Oakland County gets 1st licensed Medical Marijuana business

Posted by Sagar Satapathy on October 19, 2018.

Oakland County got its first medical marijuana business approved Thursday. The Michigan Marijuana Licensing Board, a division of the state’s Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, gave its green signal to open the Green House dispensary in Walled Lake.

Jerry Millen, one of three co-owners of Greenhouse, however, informed that the dispensary, won’t open its door until January, as there won’t be state-approved products — actual marijuana and pot-infused edibles — available that have been grown, processed and tested before then.

According to the law, an applicant has to go through thorough and often tedious financial and criminal background checks and have to prove they have enough liquid assets that would support running a highly regulated business.

Green House dispensary is one of 10 licenses that were approved by the board. Others are located in Kalamazoo, Adrian, Bay City, Vassar, Ypsilanti, Mount Morris and Detroit, including Utopia Gardens, on Lafayette on the city's lower east side, which has been operating under emergency rules for months.

The total number of licenses that have been approved this year in Oakland County include nine growers; five processors; 29 dispensaries; three transport companies and four testing facilities.

The state has asked the 200 marijuana businesses, mostly dispensaries, which are operating under emergency rules, to either get a license or shut down by Oct. 31.

Approximately 300,000 Michigan residents have been certified to use medical marijuana, which Michigan voters approved in 2008.

The state voters will consider a ballot proposal on Nov. 6 that would legalize marijuana for the recreational use of the adults.